by Peggy Milam Creighton, September 2015

Infographics are all the rage. You see them posted on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Pinterest. A Google search for "infographics" will bring up millions of poster-sized images. At first glance, it may seem that an infographic is no different from a fancy poster, but a closer look will reveal some innovative differences. So what distinguishes an infographic from a poster?

What Are Infographics?

Infographics are visual data displays that condense a profusion of facts into maps, timelines, charts, or graphs that are easy for viewers to process. Infographics may vary in shape, size, and scope, and nearly all are interactive, with hyperlinks or QR codes for sources of additional information, or buttons for sharing on social media. Well-designed infographics are innovative, engaging, social tools for presenting information to a global audience.

Why Are Infographics So Trendy?

Infographics are innately interesting to the human mind. Viewers can't stop staring at them and posting, sharing, tweeting, linking, and pinning them on social media. Why? In our fast-paced, data-clogged world, very few of us have time to read all of the information dumps that bombard us daily. Infographics organize data and condense information into a compelling message that catches our attention.

Should Infographics Be Used in Education?

Students are caught up in the same data-clogged world as adults. Students have ubiquitous access to a constant flow of communications through their smartphones and tablets. As a result, more students are in touch with current events and are engaging in social media. A recent Pew study (Purcell and Raine, 2014) indicated that 77 percent of adults believe today's students are better informed as a result of Internet activity.

At the same time, curriculum standards have become more rigorous, with technology skills embedded into all curriculum areas. Infographics use technology tools to help students draw conclusions and interpret information as well as combine disciplines of language arts, social studies, math, science, and art. Thus, infographics make great learning tools.

Twenty-first century students need to be exposed to 21st century tools and skills. Infographics created by educators as visuals can serve as models for effective communication tools, and infographics assigned as student projects can engage and motivate even the most reluctant students.

The Infographic Elevator Pitch

Infographics develop information literacy, visual literacy, and digital literacy skills.

• Infographics projects incorporate a large number of educational standards in middle and upper grade levels.
• Sharing infographics on social media leverages the power of the Internet to rapidly communicate ideas and information.
• Educators who use infographics to teach captivate student interest and spur innovation in our schools.

Why Aren't Infographics Being Used More in Schools?

Infographics have a powerful effect on 21st century learners because they are innovative, collaborative, social, creative, timely, and engaging. Students love them! So why aren't infographics being used more in schools and school libraries? The answers are varied. Educators may not have seen many infographics suited for educational use, or may not have seen other educators using them. They may not be aware how easily infographics can be created. Educators may not believe they are capable of creating their own.

With a few basic tools that are widely available, educators can create their own infographics and use them for instruction. For example, the drawing tools in Word or PowerPoint make it easy to create your own infographic. Both Word and PowerPoint allow you to set a custom page size of 11" x 17" or greater. Both programs allow you to insert backgrounds, format objects and text, and add clip art. Both allow you to create charts and graphs. Once you get the hang of it, you can see how easy it would be to assign infographics for student projects.

Ideas for your School Library Program

Perhaps you would like to try making an infographic of your own, but you haven't a clue where to begin. Try creating an infographic about the benefits of the book fair, the roles you play as librarian, the ways your budget is spent, or your impact as a school librarian. Other ideas include ways to retell a story or how to use technology to provide text-based responses.

Ideas for Using Infographics as Student Projects

Once you have tried making your own infographics, you may be inspired to try out a student infographics project. Your students may be less intimidated at experimenting with ways to create their own infographics. In fact, they may already be using some of the many tools that are available.

When students create infographics, they are not only applying information literacy skills, they are also incorporating visual, digital, and technology literacy skills. With a bit of ingenuity you should be able to connect other literacies and standards into the project.

Before you begin, take a look at what has already been done!

Sample Infographics

• dailyinfographic.com/kids-these-days-infographic
• www.kidsdiscover.com/infographics
• www.coolinfographics.com/blog/tag/children

Infographics Showcases

• www.facebook.com/infographicsshowcase
• www.creativebloq.com/graphic-design-tips/information-graphics-1232836
• www.noupe.com/graphics/a-showcase-of-beautifully-designed-infographics.html
• www.bestinfographics.com

Infographics Submissions and Contests

• submitinfographics.com
• www.loveinfographics.com/submit-infographics
• infographicjournal.com
• infographr.tumblr.com

Student Infographics Contests

• www.shell.com/global/environment-society/ecomarathon/events/americas/fan-zone/highlights/student-energy-challenge.html
• www.globalspaandwellnesssummit.org/index.php/summit-2014/2014-infographic-competition

Ideas for Student Projects

Convinced that infographics have a place in your program and with your students? If you are ready to start using infographics, perhaps a few suggestions for topics will give you a running start. The list below is just for starters. The possibilities are endless! Perhaps your students can suggest some interesting topics as well. Feel free to adapt the topics to suit your own needs, and share ideas of your own on my blog, creightonblog.typepad.com/infographics.

1. Compare and contrast famous people, similar events, governments, political campaigns, speeches, books, plays, etc. (Venn diagram)
2. Timelines of events, people, presidencies, wars, etc.
3. Literary map of specific books (see Google Lit Trips)
4. Author's lifetime achievements
5. Statistical impact of bestselling book—editions, movies, TV shows, products
6. Compare and contrast mythological heroes from different cultures
7. Supply and demand for popular products—hit song, trendy fashion item
8. Trends in economy during specific decades (e.g., 50s, 80s, 90s)
9. Before/after demographics (e.g., WWII, Hurricane Katrina, Chicago Fire, San Francisco earthquake)
10. Famous family tree (e.g., Kennedy, Roosevelt)
11. Science experiment results over time
12. Effects of good/bad diet over time
13. Visual biography of historical, sports, movie, rock star, etc.
14. Impact of specific inventions (e.g., laptop, touchscreen, mobile apps)
15. Technology usage by age group statistics
16. Social problems such as bullying, anorexia, bulimia, suicide bombings, school shootings, child abuse, etc.
17. Steps in problem solving, including terminology and examples (This type of infographic lends itself to embed videos!)
18. How to prepare for college (or careers)
19. How shared media spreads (Results of an experiment sharing an image or video would be great here.)
20. Impact of supply and demand on the international market
21. Impact of pollution (locally, regionally, nationally, or globally)
22. How to recycle (locally, regionally, nationally, or globally)
23. Stages of a star (a timeline of the birth, life, and death of a star, such as our sun)
24. The quest for space travel (timeline of history or recent developments)
25. Global warming crisis (causes, evidence, conclusion)

Student Tools

Every infographic should contain some type of data. But how do you display the data? Sometimes a picture with a single fact, quantity, or percentage is enough. Sometimes you need much more—you need to organize your data into a chart or graph.

A number of free tools for creating charts or graphs are available. Some of them are easy enough for students to use. Check out the list below. The starred sites listed in the table below are recommended for students of all ages.

Chart and Graph Tools

Infographics Tools

After the data is graphed, students will want to display it in a format that is eye-catching and that models the ones they have seen online. A variety of apps can give infographics a polished appearance and are easy to use. The starred items in the following table are student favorites.

The Big Idea

By now, you should see the potential for infographics to change the way you teach. Infographics support a variety of standards, including technology standards, information literacy standards, media literacy standards, metaliteracy standards, and so on. And infographics support curriculum standards in every subject area, including Common Core Standards. Infographics capitalize on drawing evidence from text, honing it, and analyzing and synthesizing a new idea based on facts. Infographics also have the power to change education. By using infographics for instruction, educators are not just meeting standards, but they are also communicating to students that the way their brains learn best is important. Creating their own infographics allows educators to model a 21st century tool that students will need to use. Requiring students to create their own infographics prepares them to collaborate on skill sets they will need to be successful in a 21st century workplace. Publishing student infographics online capitalizes on the vast power of social media and communications in today's world. Such changes in methodology can make ordinary teachers rock stars and spur sweeping innovation in schools.

For more ideas about infographics and your school library program, check out my new book, School Library Infographics: How to Create Them, Why to Use Them, published by ABC-CLIO.